Nazarian College Alumnus Carl Carande Honored as One of AACSB's 2021 Class of Influential Leaders

Nazarian College Alumnus Carl Carande Honored as One of AACSB's 2021 Class of Influential Leaders by Jesyka Dunn, CSUN Today

Highly accomplished business executive and Nazarian College alumnus Carl Carande has been selected as an honoree for the Association to Advance Collegiate Schools of Business’s (AACSB) 2021 Class of Influential Leaders.

Carande ’87 (Organizational Systems Management) is the global head of advisory and US vice chair advisory for KPMG, one of the world’s largest audit, tax and advisory services companies.

“We are inspired by the efforts of business school graduates like Carl Carande,” said Caryn L. Beck-Dudley, AACSB president and CEO. “California State University, Northridge is developing leaders prepared to change the world and AACSB is honored to recognize Carl Carande for his positive impact on society.”

“It’s a great honor to be included in AACSB’s Class of 2021, alongside many inspirational leaders,” said Carande. “Receiving this recognition in a year that has been challenging for us all, is a timely reminder to thank the great team that I work with at KPMG. Throughout my career, I have had the privilege to work with and learn from inspiring leaders and colleagues. One of the impacts of those learnings has been to value diverse voices and opinions in business. Being part of positive change in our society is something I feel passionate about, and I am delighted to see so many diversity and inclusion advocates and social entrepreneurs included on this list. I truly believe we are better together.”

Each year, AACSB International hosts the Influential Leaders initiative to recognize distinguished alumni – and the AACSB-accredited business schools that prepared them – who use their business education to become innovative leaders who create positive and lasting impacts within their community and industry as well as educate and inspire the next generation of business leaders.

Carande is one of the 25 business school graduates honored by AACSB International this year.

Carande joined KPMG in 2000 after more than a decade at Bank of America, where he was global director of corporate cash management pricing and analysis. He became a partner at KPMG after two years with the company and later served as national managing partner of advisory services from October 2011 to 2015. In 2013, he was named one of Consulting Magazine’s “Top 25 Consultants” for excellence in client service.

Under Carande’s leadership, KPMG’s advisory practice has expanded beyond its traditional service areas and has helped foster a new strategy division to compete with the country’s top strategy firms. In October, he was promoted to global head of advisory. Last year, Business Insider named him as one of 2020’s top 38 Power Players of Consulting.

“Carl Carande is a great inspiration and mentor to our students,” said Chandra Subramaniam, dean of the Nazarian College. “Being a respected leader in the accounting world, he understands the value of an excellent education in business and is a great partner in providing our students with a path towards success.”

AACSB International’s accreditation of CSUN’s David Nazarian College of Business and Economics places it among the top 5 percent of global business degree-granting institutions. The college’s accounting, finance and financial planning programs are regularly ranked among the nation’s best by experts in those fields.

“When I reflect on my time at CSUN, I am thankful, not only for the education I received, but also the values that it instilled in me,” said Carande. “I have carried those with me throughout my career. CSUN also gave me opportunities for personal growth and development, for which I am very grateful. I feel strongly about giving back and sharing my experiences from my career so that it may positively influence the next generation.”

Carande provides mentoring and networking opportunities to students within CSUN’s David Nazarian College of Business and Economics, and he and his wife Irene Carande ’84 (Recreational Therapy) are donors as well.

“My wife and I both contribute to endowment awards for outstanding teaching staff and those that provide financial support for students from underrepresented groups,” said Carande. “It’s important to us both that we pay our experience forward.”

Carande is the second CSUN alumnus to receive the AACSB honor. Charles Noski ’73 (Business Administration), M.S. ’95 (Accountancy) ’07 (Honorary Doctorate) was part of AACSB’s 2019 Class of Influential Leaders.